Friday, August 04, 2006

Shifting

Let it Be

Who says location, location, location is the main consideration when you buy property?

This story proves that decision for investing is wrong as one can lose your investment after 59 years.

Is it really necessary for the authorities to acquire this building for the National Heritage Center?

The parking around this building is atrocious and the traffic flow is bad if one is thinking of the busloads(?) of tourists that will arrive.

I feel sorry for this gentleman as the government had also acquired his estate to build Putrajaya.

If the authorities want to preserve the building they should designate it as a Heritage Building without buying it. The onus is then on the owner to maintain the building in the original condition with strict conditions on renovations etc.

The cinema looks very well maintained and provides an important social need for residents in KL. I expect the numbers will drop drastically if and when it is converted to a Heritage Center – maybe used for photo shoots?

The money saved could be channeled to making the city a safer place to live. Or have they not heard about those terrible criminals?

Thursday, August 03, 2006

The Good Die Young but We Should Prevent More Deaths

Burying one’s child must be the worst experience a person can endure especially if that person is on the threshold of young adulthood.

With so much promise and hope for the future, it is gut wrenching to read that people can be so callous that they are prepared to kill you for a few ringgit.

What is worrying is that this is the second incident within 2 weeks and somewhere in Wangsa Maju, the criminals are ready to pounce, as they have not been caught.

While the police may not be able to solve all the criminal acts, they should not discourage victims from making reports as the reports will give a good indication of the crime rate and also the trend. If the trend is upwards then the police request more resources.

One city that really impresses me with their police presence on the ground is Hong Kong where you can find policemen and even officers actually walking on the street. In Malaysia it is a rare sight and most cops above 35 already have a paunch.

Perhaps one way to keep cops fit and also improves residents’ confidence in the police force is to have a 3km beat three times a week for the police force for all ranks below the rank of Captain and below 50 years of age.

This “slash and rob” duo is dangerous and a task force is desperately needed to catch them before their next victim. They are suspected to be drug addicts and therefore more prone to violence.

 For high crime areas, camera surveillance may be an important deterrent coupled with a fast response police squad.

For ordinary citizens I would advise:

 Try to travel in pairs or get fellow students to provide “escorts” to and from the transit station near the college.

 Enter your local police number in your phone memory

 If you see someone in trouble try to raise the alarm but make sure you do not become the next victim. If possible get the vehicle registration number and description of the two.

 If you must cross a dark or secluded area don’t linger and be alert. Don’t be distracted with sms or games or iPod while you are walking. Observe what people are doing within a 20-foot radius.

 If you carry a hand-bag and are about to be hacked, it may be better to throw your hand-bag away from you and try to escape in the opposite direction. If they are only after money, this action may save your life.

One promising life has been snuffed out. We must do more to prevent another family from such grief.

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

Blogging with a Conscience

Reading some of the comments and insults one can read in various blogs, it could be a sign of intense frustration that some writers feel about the situation that Malaysia is in.

Mature readers should be able to discern fact from fiction but sometimes we know truth can be stranger than fiction. Perhaps if we have a Freedom of Information Act, more of the population will be able to understand government policies better.

Better still, it will help to keep more people honest if they know whatever they deliberated on will be public knowledge in 15 or 20 years time. Nowadays even local council meetings are not open to the public and most contract awards are made in “secret” meetings.

We have been asked to refer to mainstream media like the newspapers and television but the frequent reports of people being “misquoted” on contentious matters indicate that many reporters are poorly trained or the official really does not know what he is talking about.

However this incident indicates that even newspapers sometimes do the wrong thing. Here we have a criminal being exposed before the police are in a position to nab here. Can such an expose show that she was aided by the newspaper to escape?

To me the proper course of action was for the newspaper to disclose to the police first who would give them the scoop on the story. This means that the local police would have contacted the police in India and closed all escape routes before arresting the suspect.

Or does the newspaper also want to boost sales with a series on future revelations in India? We can call it “The Fugitive – Bollywood Bombshell ”.

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

A Rose by any Other Name.......

Just when the government is trying to hold parents responsible for their delinquent children we now have the NRD wanting to control names that parents want to use for their children.

It seems life is going to be more boring now with names like Previtriana definitely being frowned as it sounds Russian? I heard the lady is called that as she was born in a situation called “placenta previa”. My son too was born in a similar condition.

Apart from the restriction on names that denote royalty, the NRD should just display the information at their offices and let parents decide. Preferably these posters should be in all common languages and parents can be asked to consult the boards before they submit the names.

To illustrate a point:Supposing a parent makes a vow to the monkey god of whatever religion that he will name him to honour the god if he has a son.

A son is born and the father may name the son with some connection to “monkey”.

To avoid all the mistakes of the past, a form should be filled and verified by NRD and the parent.When children mature they can always change their name if they don’t like it.

Let’s not create bureaucratic obstacles and impinge religious sensitivities if it is not really necessary.

Too Much Time on their Hands?

The ACA directs a contractor to do repairs when they cannot prove corruption in the tender exercise.They should focus their energies in so many prominent than get involved in simple contract rectification works.

Monday, July 31, 2006

Having Children

I wonder what type of preparation for marriage do Malaysians undergo. For Catholics there is a program where couples who plan to marry must undergo a marriage course that spans a few months.

I don’t know what they teach there for when I got married many years ago there was no such requirement. I would guess the course would cover the sanctity of marriage and how children play a role in enriching a marriage.

It seems that we have many problems of delinquent children and the authorities want to make parents responsible for wayward children and some parents really agonize about their children not practicing the religion they were born into.It is a problem for many Malaysians, as sometimes the original religion may not appeal to your children.

But I don’t think the government is the best agency to deal with children who do not want to practise your religion.

My opinion is that parents must plan to have the number of children that they, and not the government, are able to nurture and nourish.Not only in feeding them and clothing them and providing shelter but also to be able to spend time with them and to provide proper guidance.

I suggest a modern family where both husband and wife work, with no family member but the maid at home, two to three children should be sufficient unless you want some children to join the non-graduate work force.

Nothing wrong with that as with too many children and both parents working, you will simply be unable to provide proper child-rearing capabilities or both of you will suffer from burnout. I think the advice to Malaysians to have many children to support the 70m-population target in the 70s was really misguided.

Perhaps this is one reason many Malaysian marriages end in divorce and that puts even more stress on the children as a broken home means more will seek solace and distraction in other activities like drugs and vice and even another religion.

Many cases have also been reported about crimes committed within the family and there is an article here

My wife and I have four children and during the earlier years, my mother stayed with us and provided much support for the children. My youngest is now nineteen and we are happy that he has been accepted into a good university and so should join his graduate siblings in three years.

I write this not to boast about my children – for sure we are not perfect parents nor are they perfect children. It is to advise younger readers to make sure you are able to nurture your children well if you want them to grow into responsible citizens.

Wasting Everyone’s Time

Is this a comedy of errors?How can such tangible evidence go missing unless someone screwed up or simply went on a buying spree.

If the ACA’s procedures did not conform to laws it says much about the competency of the agency.

We should be concerned as a matter of principle here.If evidence like supposedly hard cash can simply disappear it is no wonder that the ACA has made little progress on cases where millions of ringgit are involved.

I suggest we have a system of recovering costs for time wastage. Perhaps the courts should bill RM5000 to the ACA so that such matters do not come up for trial with any proper evidence and non-adherence to laws.

Saturday, July 29, 2006

Why Did the Police Offer a Permit for the Demonstrators?

We seem to be running the country in a strange fashion here when organisers of a planned demonstration are called by the police and offered a permit.

Everyone else had to run the gauntlet of water canon; tear gas and baton charge and face the prospect of getting beaten up during the demonstration.

What was the purpose of the demo?Looking at the raving crowd it looked like a cheap publicity stunt for some people who would otherwise have been ignored by most people.

It was not really a peaceful gathering and the police were seen having to shove back the mob in order to maintain security.In Malaysia it appears that a street demo is the preferred means to communicate rather than a peaceful and open forum where people can exchange ideas and foster greater understanding.I would bet that 95% of those protesting do not even know the history of Hizballah

What if the police cordon had broken and the mob managed to enter the conference area? Most likely they would have had to use their weapons and some people could have even been killed.

I saw some other demos on CNN and in India or Pakistan, it was a peaceful scene. They simply placed an Israeli flagged on the steps of a mosque and those going for prayers just stepped on the flag.

But in KL they had to resort to burning flags and I expect traffic must have been diverted and motorists inconvenienced.

So are the police gearing up to handle more demonstrations? That seems to be the preferred way of voicing emotions.I am not against demonstrations if they are well organised, peaceful and do not interfere with the rest of the population.With those conditions, the police should approve permits in most cases and also collect some kind of security deposit as a good behaviour bond.

Maybe we can even turn KL into the Demonstration Capital of the world by having a weekly demo at all the underused stadia in Bukit Jalil.

We can start by offering Singapore a venue for demos for the forthcoming World Bank talks in September 2006. All we need is to arrange live broadcasts to Singapore.

MalaysiaWatch Polls 5

MalaysiaWatch Polls 3 and 4

Poll 3: What Follow-up Action Would You Support for the RM490m Budget?This poll was a little difficult as people had to make a choice of differing items but 64 readers make a decision and these are the results:

57% or 36 readers felt that action should be taken against the minister as follows:

 28 readers or 44% chose “No Minister Please Resign or Be Sacked”

 8 readers or 13% chose “Ask the ACA to Probe”

11% or 7 readers asked for “Better maintained Playgrounds and Fields”

9% or 6 readers wanted “More Concrete Measures to Reduce Corruption”

8% or 5 readers chose “Boost Public Safety and Security”

8% or 5 readers chose “Improving Racial & Religious Harmony”

5% or 3 readers wanted “Easier Access for Public to Sports Hall and Stadium”

2% or 1 reader asked for “Increase Professionalism of the Police”

2% or 1 reader wanted to just “Let the Minister Carry On”

0% or no one wanted to “Strengthen Independence of Judiciary”.

Poll No 4 was about the Traffic Offences of the Ministers and the choices were easier to decide.

Surprisingly there were fewer respondents to this poll. Perhaps since many readers also have traffic summons they feel sorry for the ministers?

Poll4: “ What Action Would You Like to See the IGP Take for Ministers who Have Not Paid Long Overdue Traffic Fines?”There were 31 respondents with the following breakdown: